The Great British Bake Off returned last night & so there was the ritual gathering around the television (quite a rare sight in this household). The fundamentally absurd format - think, ten years ago, would anyone in their right mind think you could sustain a series about competing to bake cakes? - is ever more creaky & there are signs, perhaps, of genuine bad temper from Paul towards the asinine 'comedy' duo (& who could blame him?).

To be fair, Mel The Unpronounceable is just about bearable. Sue The Unspeakable, however, defies belief in her utter lack of tact & humour. An excruciating clip of her talking with Paul (a new contestant) about the prison service was a case in point. Her "put me in cuffs" quip was ill-judged to put it mildly. (Solitary confinement would seem more fitting ...).

Perhaps someone from the BBC could take Perky Sue aside into a room & close the door. Then sit her down & say kindly but firmly: you. are. not. funny. An evidently clever woman, there must be other things she could be doing.